Arrests

Often considered the most popular entertainer of the 20th century--his extravagant performances set still-unchallenged attendance records--Liberace (dubbed "Mr. Showman" in tribute to his flashy theatricality) sued a London columnist in 1956 for implying he was gay. He won.

"Arrested Development" costume designer Katie Sparks, whose efforts on the first two seasons of the Fox sitcom earned her a 2006 nomination from the Costume Designers Guild of America, was tapped by series creator Mitchell Hurwitz to work on the new streaming-to-Netflix season that will be released May 26. She recently spoke about her work on the original series and the challenges posed by revisiting - and re-dressing - the quirky Bluth family after...

Human Rights Watch criticized Egypt for eight arrests prompted by a man's statement that he was HIV-positive, and said the detentions embodied "ignorance and injustice." The U.S.-based rights group said the men, all arrested since October, were given HIV tests without consent. Two were subjected to forensic tests to look for evidence of homosexual conduct, the group said. Three men, who Human Rights Watch said had reportedly tested HIV-positive, were handcuffed to hospital beds and "only unchained for an hour each day."

A body found in brush in an unincorporated canyon area of Orange County was identified Friday as that of a 36-year-old Army veteran and soon-to-be college graduate missing since earlier this month, and her roommate has been arrested in connection with her death, authorities said. An autopsy confirmed that the body of Maribel Ramos was found Thursday afternoon near Modjeska Canyon, ending weeks of searching for the Cal State Fullerton student, Lt. David Hill of the Orange Police Department told reporters in a Friday news conference.

Dutch police arrested three men suspected of planning an attack. Prosecutors said police made the arrests in Rotterdam after the Dutch intelligence service said it was possible the suspects were about to carry out an unspecified act of violence. The news agency ANP said two of the men were Dutch Moroccans and the third was from Sudan.

A three-day sweep of a violent neighborhood resulted in 85 arrests, mostly alleged gang members suspected of violating parole or possessing weapons and drugs, police said. The operation started Tuesday with dozens of officers saturating a two-square-mile area southwest of the Civic Center, a show of force in response to a recent increase in violence in central Santa Ana neighborhoods. There had been three shootings in a 24-hour period last month and an increase in arrests of armed gang members in the area.

A New York state man has been arrested for getting too close to his bride on their wedding day. Police say Timothy Cole quarreled with a wedding guest Friday after marrying his ex-wife in Batavia. Officers knew Cole, 45, from previous arrests and realized his bride had a protection order against him. He was charged with first-degree criminal contempt, a felony, and held without bail.

Like many teenage girls, these friends were fascinated by the high fashion and flashy bling of such young Hollywood celebrities as Lindsay Lohan, Paris Hilton and Audrina Patridge. But unlike other fans, they allegedly didn't stop at Hollywood fantasy. According to Los Angeles police detectives, the group studied television shows, celebrity magazines and websites picking out clothing and jewelry they wanted. Then they figured out where the celebrities lived and, after casing the homes, broke in and took what they wanted, detectives allege.

Kenneth Dean Hunt is no criminal mastermind. He was a handyman, the guy next door, a man with a record of sex crimes and aggressive outbursts. Yet, Hunt, 34, nearly managed to escape justice after raping and killing two women in his neighborhood. His crimes, a decade apart, were decidedly imperfect, but he managed to avoid detection: The first time, a tip pointing in his direction didn't register with police; the second time, investigators didn't realize a murder had occurred.

Two men allegedly caught with almost $8 million in counterfeit traveler's checks were arrested Wednesday by Brea police, hours before they were scheduled to board a flight to Vietnam. Robert Michael Wann, 39, of Corona and Arde George Damos, 40, of Placentia, were arrested at their homes without incident at 7 a.m. by officers who had executed search warrants at the residences. Investigators recovered $7.

At least a dozen schools were put on lockdown, streets were sealed off and a wave of law enforcement swept across eastern Los Angeles and Santa Monica early Thursday after an anonymous caller threatened to "shoot up" a campus. A 19-year-old Santa Monica College student was arrested 90 minutes later on campus when he surrendered to school psychological services after police identified him as the person who had called 911, saying he had a gun and was going to attack a school and shoot himself on campus.

Felons released from prison are committing new crimes at roughly the same rate they did before Gov. Jerry Brown switched their supervision to county probation, but a new report says repeat offenses are up. The study, released by the state corrections department Thursday, holds that there is "very little difference between the one-year arrest and conviction rates of offenders released pre- and post-Realignment. " That was the message highlighted in a press statement from the corrections department.

A malfunctioning golf cart, a faulty electrical system or even arson could have led to the fire that triggered the deadly explosion of a fertilizer plant in West, Texas, but federal and state officials said Thursday that their $1-million investigation had yet to find the cause. Fourteen people died in the April 17 blast, including 12 first responders who arrived nine minutes after the fire was reported - and just eight minutes before the explosion shook the town, devastated two schools and shattered a nursing home.

Krupali Tejura wants a frozen banana stand in Newport Beach. No, not Dad's or Sugar 'N Spice or any of the other venerable spots around town. She wants  that  banana stand. Earlier this month, it was announced that  Netflix would promote new episodes of the revived TV comedy "Arrested Development"  by touring the show's fictitious Bluth's Original Frozen Banana stand in the United States and England. Apparently, though, the promotion doesn't include a stop in Newport, where the series takes place.

Seven reputed Montebello-area gang members have been arrested on suspicion of involvement in at least half a dozen killings stemming from ongoing rivalries over drugs and turf, authorities said Wednesday. The arrests made by Montebello police and federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives agents, coupled with several dozen federal and state indictments, are part of a bid to clear a backlog of unsolved gang homicides. The operation targeted Southside Montebello, a gang rooted in the community for half a century.

VALLEY SPRINGS, Calif. - On any given day, this is a quiet, rural town surrounded by miles of hills stacked with golden hay bales. But on Sunday, the sun was hot and weeks of fear had pivoted into confirmation of a sickening suspicion: the brother of a slain 8-year-old girl, Leila Fowler, was now the suspect in the April 27 stabbing death. The community of 7,500 southeast of Sacramento let out a collective breath now that a suspect was in custody. Longing for normalcy, most people took their children to the nearby lake.

A malfunctioning golf cart, a faulty electrical system or even arson could have led to the fire that triggered the deadly explosion of a fertilizer plant in West, Texas, but federal and state officials said Thursday that their $1-million investigation had yet to find the cause. Fourteen people died in the April 17 blast, including 12 first responders who arrived nine minutes after the fire was reported - and just eight minutes before the explosion shook the town, devastated two schools and shattered a nursing home.

More than 750 law enforcement officials conducted sweeps in five counties Thursday, aimed at breaking the back of the Vagos Motorcycle Club, an organization founded in the 1960s that authorities say is tied to dealing drugs and weapons. Twenty-two people were arrested in Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Riverside, Orange and Ventura counties, culminating a three-year investigation aimed at curtailing the operations of the Vagos organization.

BEIRUT - Syria on Sunday rejected Turkish charges that Damascus was behind a pair of devastating car bomb attacks in southern Turkey that killed 46 people and left scores injured. The bombings provided a worrisome indication of how the civil war in Syria is increasingly spilling into neighboring countries. In another development, a Syrian rebel group on Sunday reportedly released four United Nations peacekeepers seized along the Golan Heights border with Israel. The abduction left Israeli officials concerned that such incidents could cause peacekeepers to pull out, leaving no buffer zone between the two countries.

HOUSTON - A paramedic who responded to the devastating fertilizer plant explosion in West, Texas, last month was arrested Friday after federal investigators said they discovered he had the makings of a pipe bomb. It was not clear whether the arrest was connected to the April 17 explosion, which killed 14 people and injured more than 160 others in the small McLennan County town about 70 miles south of Dallas. The explosion had been investigated as an industrial accident, but officials said Friday they had started a criminal investigation.